Last Week of January in København

31.1.10

Friends and Family:

Hi everybody. It has been yet another great week in Denmark. I am going to jump right into the details!

School has officially begun which means that testing has started :( UGH! I have my first test this upcoming Tuesday and let's just say I am less than thrilled. However, I did switch around my schedule a bit and I am now, not taking a course at the University of Copenhagen. Instead, I will be taking the course, Holocaust and Genocide through DIS. I decided to switch into this class because I found out that my grade at the U of Copenhagen was decided on one final test (this was the Human Rights in Africa course). Needless to say, I am not a test taker and quickly got out of that one. Nonetheless, I am very excited about my new course because we will be traveling to Hamburg, Germany to visit one of the largest Holocaust museums in the world.

Speaking of Germany, I am so very excited about my guests that are coming throughout my semester in Denmark. My dearest mother and grandma will be visiting for over a week in March!! They are coming on the 8th and staying until the 18th I believe. I can NOT wait for them to come. They are staying at a hotel that is within a two minute walk of my school. Not to mention, they will hopefully be able to travel with me to Germany to see the Holocaust museum. I still have to clear it with DIS but it looks like it is a go as of right now! Also, they will be able to go with my Human Trafficking class to the "Red Light District" where we will be studying the area in terms of prostitution and human smuggling. It should be a very interesting field trip. In addition, my close friend Patsy, who is also in my sorority back at Dickinson, is currently studying abroad in England. She is going to visit me in two weekends!! That weekend happens to be a Danish holiday that is similar to our Halloween. On top of that, it is Valentine's Day weekend. So Patsy and I are going to go out to dinner together and celebrate the holiday! :) I am so excited.

This week Tanja, my oldest host sibling, had her graduation party this past Thursday at our house. I got to meet all of the Klausens' friends and family members. It was great to see such a large table (full of Thai food, yummy) surrounded by dear friends. I also was able to visit my youngest host sibling's (Terese) Trampoline practice after school one day. I drove with my host brother Tim and watched her do flips and tricks on a trampoline. I wanted to jump on the trampoline so badly and continue my gymnastics skills...however; I decided it probably wasn't a good idea. There were kids from all ages doing back flips, toe-touches, and full twisting layouts on these huge tramps. It looked like a lot of fun :)

This weekend, temperatures hit an all time low of -6 degrees. Needless to say, I went to bed with socks, my north face jacket, and sweatpants on these past two nights. Although, my friends and I had plans to go to the Absolut Ice Bar (a bar, completely made of ice...they give you special coats and gloves while you drink from ice blocks!), we decided we should save that for a warmer day. So therefore, we went to the Egmont Køllegium. This is a Danish dorm for students at Copenhagen U. I had so much fun talking with the Danes and teaching them drinking games. They laughed at some of them but enjoyed the company of foreigners! Before we arrived at the dorm, we got dinner at McDonalds! It was the cheapest place in all of Copenhagen and we had to see if it tasted the same. As expected, it tasted just like an American Micky D's-- so yummy. I got a happy meal and I was so excited when I received a toy!! I carried my Simon (from Alvin and the Chipmunks) figure throughout the night :).

I have so much to look forward to in these next couple of weeks. This weekend, I head to Western Denmark, to a city called Jutland, on a field study with my core class (Psychology of Happiness). While on the study tour, I compare how Psychology of Happiness is applied throughout different institutions, organizations, and areas throughout the major parts of Denmark. I believe Jutland is the second largest city in Denmark. Then the following weekend Patsy comes! The weekend after, I travel to Scotland for Psychology of Happiness again. Then the next weekend my Mother and Grandmother come. By then, I will already be in the middle of March!

I am looking forward to sharing my adventures with you all every week. From the looks of my schedule, there will be lots to report on every weekend. Thanks for your constant support and love. Please leave any comments and or send your warmth to Denmark.

All my love and more,

Chelsea

p.s. Here are pictures of my room!

The First Weekend, Full of Firsts

24.01.10:

Hi family and friends! It has been a few days and I have so much to tell you. I have gotten lost on the train; tried beets (yuck), enjoyed wonderful meals and laughs with my host family, visited the famous Kronborg's Castle, experienced the nightlife of Copenhagen, and have caught up on my OC, homework, and sleep!

I have had my first couple of classes here in Copenhagen and I am happy to report that they are all taught by English speaking professors. For those of you who do not know, I am a Psychology and Sociology double major. Therefore, I am taking Psychology of Happiness (core course), Developmental Disorders, Human Trafficking in Europe, and Human Rights in Africa. I have only had two of the four, however, both have been very interesting and contain many exciting trips throughout the semester. Some include traveling two Scotland, the other side of Denmark, and even visiting the Red Light District here in Copenhagen. But who want to hear about my education right? Hehe

I can not even begin to tell you how much I have enjoyed staying at the Klaus. Some of you have emailed me asking more about the family ... Here it goes! I have two wonderful host parents, Klaus and Annette. Klaus, speaks the best English and we have been getting closer and closer to one another every day. Today, we watched X-Factor together (which is the Danish, American Idol) and he continued two make fun of me and my eating habits. For example, today at the dinner table he Poked fun at me because I did not eat my onions. Similar to my own father, he acted as a kid and said, "you do not like onnnnnions, you do not like onnnnions!":) Annette Cook fabulous meals and always asks if I need anything. She tries to speak as much as she can in English, Which I appreciate here trying. She often says, "sleepy, you?" or short words to get this point across. My host parents and I had an hour and a half conversation last night (with an English / Danish Dictionary), after a wonderful chicken dinner (with French Fries Yay), about Psychology, Judaism, my family, my grandma's and mother's visit (they will be coming in March!), and about school. I am very Fortunate two have such an inviting family. They ask about how my day was, we watch t.v. together, enjoy learning about one another's lifestyle, they have an English / Danish dictionary to the table at all times, and say good night every night. It's so nice to feel like I am a party of their family when I am missing my so much at home. The children are ages 24 (Tanja), 18 (Tim), and 13 (Terese) (girl, boy, girl). Tanja is just graduating from Sign Language School and is very fun to talk to. She is very sweet / beautiful, short blond hair, and often times tells me what the family is talking about at the dinner table. She does not live in the house but eats dinner with her family every night Which is something that I admire and wish Ben could do to our house. Tim, is in high school (if I can recall the education system that correctly) and is very fun. We talk about music, play wii, and often times when he is at school, will facebook chat me and ask how my day is going! Terese is your typical teenage girl. She is in love with Taylor Laurent from Twilight (which we talk about a lot together) and is a very beautiful girl. She is blonde and blast here Christina Aguilera and Black Eyed Peas music. She is bubbly and has cooked my favorite Danish pastry after I tried to explain it to the family to the table (it is like our cinnamon rolls, but even better!). Since Tim and Terese live in the house with me, we have: played Wii together, looked two Tivoli (an amusement park right downtown) and all of the scary roller coaster Terese claims she will MAKE me go on, Listen to Music, and do the dishes together. The Klausens make me feel right at home and have been such great people to live with so far throughout my adventure abroad.

This weekend I had the chance to be a part of the nightlife in Copenhagen. I experienced my very first $ $ 28 hamburger (yes, U.S. money, and yes that expensive), that was plain and nothing special, yet cost so much. It was delicious, thankfully, but I winced at the thought of my bank account slowly diminishing each and every meal. I ordered the burger two an Irish Pub with another Dickinson student, Caitlin, and some friends. After the juicy, yet pricy, burgers, we all headed to experience the bars in Copenhagen. Jumping up and down to the fact that I can drink in Denmark (sorry Mom and Dad), we ordered shots all around and began the semester off with a kick! After this, we simply went to a sponsored (by my school, DIS) party that was in a Disco Club. It was so much fun and there were over 650 students who attended. Again mentioning alcohol, sorry, they provided free drinks and food for those who hate DIS ID's and we danced the night away. I was so happy that the music was in English and there were disco balls / neon lights! I met a ton of people there (for the family: meet Christian Remmel, Darin's frat brother. He was so sweet and customs me how Darin was his favorite sophomore!) And everyone seemed to be having a great time.

The following day I visited Kronborg Castle with my friend Caitlin. It was such a gorgeous castle. For those of you who have facebook, I uploaded more photos of the chambers within the castle, if you are interested. For those of you who do not know, the setting for Shakespeare's "Hamlet" was inspired by this castle. Outside of the castle walls you could see Sweden and the other islands of Denmark. It was brutally cold that morning, but a gorgeous / educational trip. This castle is one of the top ten most beautiful castle's in the world.

Due to all of the excessive eating, I was thrilled to find a workout facility right next to my school! It is the Coolest gym for they have a DJ who spins his own music every morning to get the people of Copenhagen going. Thank the Lord I like waking up early! The gym has neon lights throughout the facility and you sign in by fingerprint. Not to mention, there are personal trainers who will work with you on a set exercise schedule and give you their preferred smoothie / power drink (for your workout) from the "Caffe" inside the gym. I have had a ball deciding what dance class two-and-take Whether or not I should go into the "ice bath" (literally a hot tub full of ice in each gender's bathroom!).

I have had such a wonderful first week. I have experienced different foods (some I never thought I would eat), enjoyed a night on the town, have grown closer to my host family, met new people, gotten lost on the subway train, enjoyed alcoholic beverages, purchased an expensive meal, and have received communication with you ... and oh yes, gone two classes! I hope you have enjoyed my blogs. I have enjoyed sharing my experiences with you and can not thank you enough for the support. I never thought I could do a semester abroad, but so far, so GREAT! I look forward to next time.

All my love and more,

Chelsea

19.01.2010. Scavenger hunt!

Hej friends and family! I had such a wonderful day today exploring the city. Today was the scavenger hunt around the city of Copenhagen, and gosh they meant “literally all over the city”. The hunt lasted about three hours and I had my back pack to carry (bummer):( . I am totally an American tourist with my North Face back pack, stopping at every corner to take a picture.

Anyways, throughout the scavenger hunt I visited many famous locations which make Denmark such a wonderful country. I can even recall all of them but here are some places that stuck out. The new Opera house is a beautiful building that was recently built in 2003! It is modern looking and it sits on the canal looking straight at the Queen’s Castle. I was told that we (DIS students) get a discount to see Ballets, Operas, and Plays! Yay. I also visited the Royal Family Castle which is amazing. They even had guards in tall hats, long coats, you know with the straight face; walking around. Of course, I had to be immature and went up and waved—no such luck. No wave back! I learned after that the Queen wasn’t traveling and actually was having lunch in the castle so security was fairly high. One thing I thought was very interesting is they have the Denmark flag on top of the castle when she is inside and they take it down when she is out or traveling. Can you imagine if she ran her own errands putting the flag up and back down again!?

I also had the opportunity to walk along the famous “Stroget” street. This street is the longest shopping street in all of Scandinavia and let me tell you---no lie, its long. I was jumping up and down at the sight of Gucci, Chanel, H &M, Body Shop (yay Mommy!), European favorites, Tommy Hilfiger, Lacoste, and so much more! I actually may have mentioned to my group that we should just shop and stop the scavenger hunt, little did I know, the hunt was “serious” to many people :) Woops!

After the scavenger hunt I was faced with reality when we had to pick up our text books! Totally forgot I am here for school. Bummer---homework already. I am starting to get closer to my host family which has been great. In fact, I helped my host sibling out with her English homework yesterday and finally got to communicate back and forth with her. I also got my butt kicked in Wii bowling; Danes must be good because I got killed. Mother, you will be so proud, I had fish last night for dinner (for all of you who may not know, I absolutely CAN’T STAND FISH). I didn’t want to be rude and I definitely did not ask what kind of fish it was (for I was scared I would suddenly be ill); therefore I loaded it with butter and said “its chicken, its chicken”. Needless to say, it wasn’t half bad. It turns out that the fish is a special type only found in Denmark (go figure!).

The next couple of days I have class so nothing will be of interest to you. However, this weekend I signed up to go and visit a famous castle called Kronborg Castle (or Hamlets Castle). This castle was immortalized by Shakespeare. It should be very interesting and I can’t wait. There is also a welcome party that DIS is throwing for all the students here! I am meeting more and more students and Danes. Although I got on the wrong train this morning, I feel like I am grasping the city life more and more everyday (For family: I just found out that one of Darin’s frat brothers is here. I can’t wait to meet him and a friend is supposed to introduce me tomorrow!)

Can’t wait to tell you more. Miss you all. Love you!

Chels

17. January. 2010

My first day in Denmark has been quite the experience in the most positive light. Although the plane trip wasn’t as I hoped, for my chair didn’t recline, I managed to make it safely with both 50 pound bags in hand! My fellow students laughed at my attempt to shuttle all of my luggage into the DIS (Danish Institute for Studies) charter bus. Needless to say, I am a strong independent woman---and found a male to help me :).

Waiting for me at in the host family pickup room were three blonde Klausens. They were very friendly and drove me to their home. I had my own room with an American flag on the desk as well as a newly purchased hairdryer. Hehe :) My Dad would snicker at my high maintenance attitudes which yes, may have traveled with me across the world in tiny ways. I experienced my first culture miscommunication when I needed to use the bathroom immediately! I hadn’t gone to the bathroom since before the plane ride. Well, my host sibling (18 year old, male named Tim) escorted me into a room without a toilet. I immediately began panicking thinking I would have to go outside into the cold tundra and use a bathroom in an outhouse. Much to my surprise I wandered the house, after I pretended to wash my hands, and found a toilet upstairs. Little did I know bathroom means a room with a shower and a sink. While a toilet, means a room with a toilet. Yay, toilets do exist in Denmark!

I also had my first experience with a set “tea-time”. Tea time in the Klausen’s house is set on the weekends around 1 p.m. your time or 13 o’clock in Denmark. Trying not to let my picky eating habits get the better of me, I accepted the tea; however, with three large table spoons of sugar! Needless to say, it was delicious. Lunch time in Denmark traditionally includes one piece of bread with meats, cheese, or other toppings such as (anchovies, tomatoes, and other delicious things I am sssooo in love with :(. Dinner was fantastic for I had chicken, broccoli, pasta, and wine!

After dinner we played the Danish version of Sorry and we all headed to bed. My first day was filled with excitement and nerves for I unpacked my clothes and it hit me that I will be here for 4-5 more months. However, talking with you all has made it feel like home. I miss you all very much and will be sending you another update shortly. Orientation starts tomorrow so it may be a few days! However, I explore the city and will have pictures to update.

Tak! (Thanks)
Chelsea

To my family and friends,

I am starting this blog, so all of you can read about my adventures while I am traveling abroad. I will miss you all very much and hope that you find enjoyment from my posts. Feel free to comment or post back whenever you would like for I will be missing you all. I can't guarantee that I will be able to write as frequently as you hope, but will do my best to share all of my experiences with you.

I am still in the states and I am currently in the packing process. Oh boy! Whoever said two suitcases will do, clearly does not understand how much I love shoes. My only fear, besides not fitting all of my clothes into my suitcase, is that I will blow up my computer when I am in Denmark. Hopefully all will work out and you will be hearing from me shortly.


Until then all my love,
Chelsea